Chapter 22 Tests in Prayer
"Your Majesty, your delivery is drawing ever closer. Perhaps this old servant should report this to the Empress Dowager?" Granny Ji was very worried about the Empress's health.
Going out with such a big belly, what if she gets bumped or knocked over?
This is the legitimate son and grandson; she believed the Empress Dowager would not disagree.
Fanghua shook her head. "It's alright, Granny. The imperial physician said that the closer one gets to childbirth, the more one should walk around. This trip is to pray for the First Prince. I'm about to become a mother myself, so I have to make this trip."
After saying that, she went to support her belly. Fanghua noticed that ever since her belly got bigger, she had been doing this more and more often.
It feels like my heart is empty if I don't hold on to it for a while.
Seeing that the Empress rejected her suggestion, Granny Ji couldn't help but get anxious. "Sister Zhang, you should persuade the Empress. The time for her delivery is getting closer and closer, and we have to be careful."
Praying for blessings is not something that can be done in a short time, and if something happens along the way, the Empress will be in even more trouble.
Although Granny Ji was sent by the Empress Dowager, she had served Fanghua for so long that she had long recognized who her master was.
This unwavering loyalty and youthful spirit will not be wasted.
“Granny Ji is fine. I am in good health. It’s just a prayer. I can handle it. Besides, for the sake of the First Prince, I, as his legal mother, have to go no matter what.”
Although she didn't know what they were planning, Fanghua felt that if she didn't go, something terrible would happen, so she might as well go.
Seeing that she couldn't persuade her otherwise, Granny Ji had no choice but to give up. However, she insisted on going with Fanghua herself, to which Fanghua readily agreed.
Now, the people serving Fanghua are all highly capable, so she is not afraid of getting into trouble when she goes out.
She felt at ease knowing that there were people who knew medicine and martial arts.
Soon the shaman was brought into the palace, and the women of the harem also went to the Fengxian Hall.
Inside the hall, the Empress Dowager and the Emperor stood at the front, followed by Empress Fanghua, and then Niohuru and Majia.
However, Ma Jia's behavior today was rather strange; she actually came masked.
Seeing her dressed like this, Fanghua smiled knowingly. It seemed that Xiaofeng's medicine was working.
If you get closer, you can smell the stench of decay that's been masked by face powder; it's really quite interesting.
Behind the two were some concubines of little status in the palace, and among them was someone Fanghua had never expected: Nara.
Fortunately, she didn't notice at the time; if she had, she might have been furious.
When the shaman Jiangshi saw that everyone had gathered, he immediately started singing and dancing.
First, they circled around the Empress Dowager and the Emperor, and then it was the Empress's turn.
However, Fanghua became suspicious because she stayed at the Empress's place for too long.
Regardless of whether this person has real skills or not, Fanghua is unwilling to hand over her life and death to someone else.
Just as she was about to ask Xiaofeng to do something, an invisible aura emanating from the shaman locked onto Fanghua.
Fanghua, being a reborn person, was very perceptive and immediately noticed that something was wrong.
Just as the monk looked directly into her eyes, Fanghua also raised her beautiful eyes to look at him, and the two stared at each other for a moment.
Just as the shaman was about to make his move, Xiao Feng's cry startled Fang Hua, who had been lost in thought.
"What's going on?" Fanghua felt a little dizzy and immediately asked Xiaofeng.
“Master, this person has used a soul-capturing technique to try and make you reveal your true feelings.”
What a vicious scheme.
If she's really being manipulated, then all her actions will be exposed, and that sorcerer deserves to die.
"Xiao Feng, reverse manipulation, I'd like to see what they're up to?"
"Yes, Master." Xiao Feng acted quickly, her divine soul activated. A mere shaman was no match for Xiao Feng's Phoenix Seal Spirit.
"Speak! Why did you harm my master?"
The monk closed his eyes at some point.
In a place where no one could hear her, Xiao Feng completely exposed the sorcerer.
When Fanghua heard Xiaofeng relay the story, her heart grew even colder.
"Excellent tactic. It seems that the person this prayer is truly meant to target is me. Haha, good, good, good."
Since that's the case, then don't blame her for being ruthless.
"Xiao Feng, tell everyone that Ma Jia is a defiled woman. Any child she gives birth to will either die young or be mentally challenged. Even if they are lucky enough to survive, they will not live past the age of ten."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Feng immediately controlled the mage's soul and slowly approached the empress from behind.
"This woman is filthy, Your Majesty! She is an ominous woman. I beg Your Majesty to execute her immediately."
Xiao Feng is much more ruthless than Fang Hua; she wanted Ma Jia's life right off the bat.
The Empress Dowager and Emperor Kangxi were immediately alarmed upon hearing this, because what they had done that day was to ask the Taoist priest to check if the Empress was unwell.
The monk had been standing in front of the Empress, and they thought there was something wrong with her. They never expected it to be Lady Ma Jia.
"Master, what's going on?" The Empress Dowager stopped the Emperor from stepping forward and went to the Master herself to ask, "What is meant by 'defilement of the body'?"
When the Empress Dowager asked a question, the monk closed his eyes again, but his eyeballs kept moving around in their sockets, which looked quite frightening.
“A filthy person despised by the Eternal Heaven, she should not have entered the palace. Those who should not have entered the palace will have their children die young. If any of them survive, they will surely be mentally challenged. This is an ominous sign, an ominous sign indeed.”
After saying this, the monk spat out a mouthful of blood and swayed unsteadily.
If it weren't for the servants supporting him, the monk would probably have collapsed and wouldn't be able to get up by now.
"How is this possible?" Emperor Kangxi was incredulous.
If Lady Ma Jia were truly an unlucky person, how could she have given birth to Cheng Rui, the eldest son of the emperor?
Furthermore, he clearly invited the sorcerer into the palace for the Empress's sake, but the sorcerer ultimately pointed to Lady Ma Jia, which made him suspect that today's events were the Empress's doing.
However, the monk was not invited by the Empress Dowager, and the Empress could not fake it.
"If she is so filthy, then how come I am unharmed?" Kangxi still didn't believe it, and his face turned fierce. "Master, don't forget why we invited you to the palace today?"
Kangxi's tone also became very stern.
Judging from his current appearance, anyone with eyes can see that he has something in mind.
Fanghua remained unmoved, standing there blankly, motionless.
Niohuru was probably frightened and went straight to the Empress Dowager's side, since the latter was quite far away.
The concubines behind him also avoided him, for fear of being implicated.
The little phoenix that controls the sorcerer understands the emperor's intentions, but can it do as he wishes?
Of course not.
“No mistake, I didn’t miscalculate, she is a filthy person.” After saying that, he directly tore off Ma Jia’s covering, “This is the punishment of the Eternal Heaven.”
After saying this, the monk broke free from the person supporting him and knelt heavily on the ground, saying, "Please forgive me, Eternal Heaven," and kept kowtowing.
That behavior really did seem a bit crazy.
The room was filled with absurdity, but in the end, it was the Empress Dowager who stepped forward to intimidate everyone, saying, "Everyone, stand still and don't move."
At the command, everyone stood still, not daring to move an inch.
Fanghua also snapped out of her daze at the harsh shout.
She looked at everyone with a bewildered expression. "Grandmother, what happened?" she asked the Empress Dowager with her innocent gaze.
Seeing her like this, the Empress Dowager patted her shoulder and said, "It's alright, Empress, you can stand behind the Emperor."
Fanghua was very clever and slowly walked behind Kangxi. Kangxi also reached out to support her, saying, "Fang'er, don't be afraid, I'm here."
Regardless of whether it's true or not, at least right now Kangxi's concern for her and his care about her unborn child are genuine.
Granny Ji and the others who had come with Fanghua immediately stepped forward to support their mistress, fearing that she might have been frightened.
"Yes, Your Majesty." Her eyes were full of trust in him.
"Let the maids help you, I'll go see Lady Magiya."
At this moment, Ma Jia was so frightened that she fell to the ground.
The growths on her body had only appeared recently.
She summoned the imperial physician, but he said it wasn't poisoning and kept giving her medicine, but it didn't help at all.
It hasn't been long, and she still doesn't have a single good spot on her body.
They were all covered with large pustules, and the fluid that oozed out smelled foul.
If she hadn't come to pray for her son today, she would never have stepped out of Chuxiu Palace.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, please do justice for me! I'm innocent, I'm innocent!"
She truly regretted it; she shouldn't have come.
Upon hearing her plea for justice, the shaman immediately reacted, pulling something from his robes and sprinkling it directly onto Ma Jia's body.
"You wicked beast, how dare you defile the Emperor!"
The object sizzled as soon as it was thrown at Ma Jia, like skin being roasted on a hot plate. Not only was the sound loud, but the smell was also extremely unpleasant.
It shouldn't be described as smelly, but rather as stinking.
"You filthy wretch, get out of here at once!"
No matter how much Ma Jia pleaded or cried out that she was innocent, no one dared to step forward.
Finally, as if she knew her fate, Ma Jia went mad.
She stood up. "Liars, you're all liars." She grabbed the sorcerer's robe and shook it. "Tell me, did the Queen make you do this? Queen, how cruel you are!"
At this moment, she had long lost her former gentleness; all that remained was madness and resentment.
"Empress, you are the Empress! Do you want to get rid of me and Chengrui? Your Majesty, look at this! The Empress can't stand that you have other children. What a virtuous Empress! She doesn't deserve it."
Ma Jia's madness was ultimately borne by the sorcerer alone; he vomited blood and died as Ma Jia shook him.
Of course, the truth is that Fanghua was afraid of saying too much and making a mistake, which is why she let Xiaofeng deal with the sorcerer.
Lady Ma was so terrified by the monk's death that she lunged at Emperor Kangxi.
No one knows what Kangxi was thinking, but as soon as she got close, he kicked her, and that kick sent Lady Ma Jia to her death.
This was something Fanghua hadn't expected.
She died, just like that. It was too good for her.
The Empress Dowager closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and exhaled after a long while, saying, "Disperse, everyone."
No one dared to ask any more questions. After paying their respects, they left the Fengxian Hall.
As Fanghua was about to leave, the Empress Dowager suddenly called out to her, "Fanghua, come to my palace in a couple of days. I have something I'd like to discuss with you."
"Yes, my granddaughter-in-law will be here in a couple of days."
The Empress Dowager also left, leaving only the grandmother and grandson in the main hall, along with the monk's corpse.
"Grandmother." Kangxi had barely opened his mouth when the Empress Dowager interrupted him, "Summon the imperial physician first. I want to see how the monk died."
They didn't believe the Empress would take action, since the Empress and the sorcerer had never met before.
This master was personally invited by her.
Back when she was still a princess, a shaman prophesied that she was destined to be a phoenix, so she had great faith in shamans.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have invited someone into the palace to perform a ritual to pray for blessings.
Unexpectedly, instead of bringing blessings, the monk lost his life.
"Yes, I'll listen to Grandmother."
The imperial physician arrived quickly, and after paying his respects, he went to examine the monk's body.
The results were indeed unacceptable.
"He died from a broken heart? How... how is that possible?"
Emperor Kangxi was a martial artist, so he naturally understood what a broken heart meridian meant.
He wouldn't believe it even if you told him the Empress was behind it.
Hesheli Fanghua had no martial arts skills whatsoever, so how could she have the ability to sever the heart's pulse from such a distance?
"Are you sure you haven't made a mistake in diagnosis?" The Empress Dowager was a woman of deep cunning; she thought more deeply and believed more readily.
"I guarantee with my life that this person died from a broken heart, and that the heart stopped on its own without any external force."
The imperial physician was an elderly man, and judging from his conversation with the Empress Dowager, he was likely a physician trusted by her.
"Alright, I understand. You may leave."
After everyone else was gone, the Empress Dowager first offered incense to the ancestors, saying, "Emperor, Chengrui cannot be saved. You are still young and will have children in the future."
The shaman died suddenly without any external force, which is likely the punishment from the Eternal Heaven for revealing heavenly secrets.
The children born to Lady Ma Jia should not survive, so as not to taint the emperor's true dragon aura.
Kangxi was naturally reluctant to part with Chengrui, who was already three years old and whom he had watched grow up. How could he just give him up like that?
"Grandmother, your grandson has lost one of his sons." Kangxi's eyes were red.
Seeing her grandson's helpless and pained appearance, the Empress Dowager felt sorry for him.
"It's alright, the Empress is about to give birth, and your other child will be coming soon."
I was thinking of doing something, but now it seems I can't.
Emperor Kangxi was naturally looking forward to this child. "Grandmother, can the Empress's child be kept?" he asked softly.
Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager paused in her movement of turning the prayer beads, then sighed softly, "The Emperor knows?"
"Grandmother, I have my own way of balancing the previous dynasty. Can Fang'er's child be kept?" He had already lost one child.
"Alas, he is my great-grandson, and of course I cherish him. But have you thought about the future?"
The balance between grandparents and grandchildren remains unknown.
But Fanghua bled as soon as she returned to Kunning Palace.
One reason was fear, and the other was that there was something wrong with the incense at Fengxian Hall.
It wasn't the Empress Dowager who did it, but rather that shaman.
It seems he used such deceptive methods to establish his faith.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty is bleeding."
Upon their return, Granny Ji and Granny Zhang were the first to notice something amiss with the Empress, and immediately shouted loudly, "Summon the imperial physician! Quickly summon the imperial physician!"
Soon, Physician Zhang and Physician Wang arrived.
Kunning Palace was thrown into chaos.
By the time the Empress Dowager and Emperor Kangxi arrived, the Empress had already taken her medicine and fallen asleep.
Fanghua woke up again three days later.
For the past three days, she has been drinking spiritual spring water in the space to detoxify. The baby in her womb is getting closer and closer to birth, and she does not want the child to be born with a disease.
Of course, we need to get rid of the last bit of poison.
She dared to do this because she discovered that the medicine she was given while she was unconscious had an antidote effect.
Xiao Feng learned that the Empress Dowager had ordered her to give birth to the eldest son in good health, even if it meant harming the mother's body.
Fanghua was puzzled, wondering what kind of agreement the grandfather and grandson had reached after that day that allowed her to safely give birth to their eldest son.
But as long as she gets her wish.
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